Positioning device for car couplers



A. E. SMALL POSITIONING DEVICE FOR CAR coUPLERs Filed Jan. 2o, 1927 June12, 192s.

Patented June 12, 1928i.

. i y 1,673,474 PATENT orifice.

ARTHUR n. sMALnor CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AssIGNon `To UNION Ivrn'rAI.ISRODIIC'IS i COMPANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIsA CORPORATION or DELAWARE. i,i

rosITIONINcrv DEVICE non can oournnns.

Application fuea January zo, 1927. semaine. 162,318.

This device relates to means for automatically positioning the couplerof a railway car by gravity. It is to be understood that the inventionis not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described2as it is Obvious that various modifications i thereof within the scopeof the claims will occur to persons skilled in the art.

'of the automatic coupler.

Two railway cars are automatically coupled together by the movement jor'Jair respective couplers forcing the tails of the pivoted knucklesbehind gravity locks. The` couplers aremounted in the cars so as topermit a limited amount of lateral movement.

' Such limitation is necessary and essential because if the couplerswere allowed to move too far to either side, the couplers of the twocars being coupled would pass eachother y and not couple, therebydefeating the object The greater the lateral movement -Of a coupler theless side pressure on the striking casting when the ears are goingaround curves. This lateral pressure forces the wheel anges against thei rail causing considerable friction and wearing of the rails andwheels. l n

Coupler positioningdevices (or centering devicesas they are sometimescalled) are frequently used to increasel the amount of permissiblelateral movement of a coupler by providing automatic means for returningthe couplers to the longitudinal center of the car or at least closeenough thereto'so that the automatic couplers will couple. This is whatis termed the coupling range. y

Coupler positioning devices reduce the number of broken knuckles andguard arms on couplers which members are frequently bent or broken whenthe couplers are not within coupling range. Such devices also reduce thenumber of accidents to trainmen as they are not required to go betweenthe cars and position the coupler preparatory to coupling.

A common form of such device comprises a coupler carrier swingablysuspended from any convenient part of the car (usually-the strikingcasting) by links at each end thereof. Such a device is very dependableand positive because it is actuated s implyby gravity. My presentyinvention is an 1m provement upon such structures and comprises meansto support the carrier independently of the links, which means do notinterfere with' the vertical removal or repivotal connection between thecoupler and yoke (or draft gean) Another object is to provide means tosupport a swingable coupler carrier in the event of a failure of one orboth of the supporting links, or if the end ofthe carrier should breakO. f

Anotherl object is to provide means to re-v tain the carrier in suchaposition that it will support the coupler even if one (or both) ofthelinks should fail or be lost.

In the drawings: l Y

Fig.4 l shows a typical application of my device to a railway car. Y l fF 2 is a side elevation of F ig. 1.-"` Fig. shows the device with one ofthe links missing and a broken carrier.

Fig. 4 shows a modified form.`

Fig. 5 shows adetail of the carrier.

' lt is frequent-ly desirable to lremoveor replace the couplerwithoutdetaching it from the draft gear, therefore, I provide a strik-` ingcast-ing 2 which has the usualmeans 3 4 to restrict the upward andlateral movements of the coupler but which is provided with an openingat its lower side lfor the installation or removal of the coupler 5 byraising y it vertically from the ground making what is commonly ycalleda yoke strikinglcasting.` A 'great many cars areequ'ipped with such ayoke striking casting having a swingable carry iron supported theretobylinks,

but if either of such links or such carrier should fail the couplercould fall upon the track, and as thedraft gear is attached to the car,the coupler and draft gear might form a project-ion which would derailthe train. It has been proposed to form an integral lower portion in thestriking casting betweent-he walls of which the swingable carriermoves,which portion forms an emergency coupler support and while suchconstruction has certain advantages it does not permit of the removal orreplacing of the coupler without detaching it from the draft gear.

In the form shown the coupler 5 rests upon i the carrier 6 and it isretained in proper position thereon by the lugs 7 which carrier

